Forest Products Permits

Mushrooms | Salal ("Brocha") | Firewood | Wild Berries | Christmas Trees

What are Special Forest Products?

Non-timber forest products, or special forest products, include foods such as plants, wild edible mushrooms, fruits and nuts; medicinal plants and fungi; floral greenery and horticultural stock; fiber, oil resins, and other chemical extracts from plants, lichens, and fungi; as well as fuelwood and small diameter wood used for poles, posts, and carvings. Special forest products are a vital part of local and regional economies in the Pacific Northwest and many products hold significant cultural value which represents a long history of ecological knowledge and local use.

Personal and Commercial Use permits are required in order to gather many special forest products. Permits may require a fee payment and must be obtained from Forest Service offices. Availability may vary by season and district office.

Safety guidelines:

Safety Recommendations; Recomendaciones de Seguridad

Mushroom Picking

Commercial use permit: A permit is required for commercial picking of mushrooms on national forest land. Prices are:

$50.00 for 50 gallons - a 14 day permit
$80.00 for 80 gallons - a 30 day permit
$120.00 for 120 gallons - a calendar year permit

A Commercial Use Permit is required for any individual intending to sell the mushrooms, or harvesting more than the daily three (3) gallon multiple species limit.

Make an appointment to buy a permit at your nearest Olympic National Forest office.

Personal use: No permit is required for incidental gathering of mushrooms for personal use. For a single species, the daily limit for personal use is one (1) gallon. For multiple species, the daily limit is three (3) species, (1) gallon each. Harvested chanterelle mushrooms must have a cap diameter of one inch or greater. You may not sell or trade mushrooms gathered with a personal use permit. 

• Review Olympic National Forest mushroom picking information (PDF File - 1 mb) 

Forest Greenery - Salal ("Brocha")

Forest greenery products include salal, huckleberry, Oregon grape, and sword fern. Review information about harvesting forest greenery (PDF)

Commercial use permit: Salal is the only greenery for which commercial use permits are available. Read about the Olympic National Forest salal harvest lottery.

Winter 2023 Salal Lottery Dates:

Permits for commercial-use salal on the Olympic National Forest will go on sale over two days in January and March 2023. Permit sales will be as follows:

• January 11^th and March 8^th  
  • Quilcene Office, 295142 Highway 101 S., Quilcene, WA
  • Quinault Office, 353 South Shore Road, Quinault, WA
• January 12^th and March 9^th
  • Forks Office, 437 Tillicum Lane, Forks, WA

Sales will begin at 9am at each office on the day listed.

Los permisos para salal de uso comercial en el Olympic National Forest saldrán a la venta durante dos días en enero y marzo del 2023. Las ventas de permisos serán las siguientes:

• 11 de enero y 8 de marzo
  • Oficina de Quilcene, 295142 Highway 101 S., Quilcene, WA
  • Oficina de Quinault, 353 South Shore Road, Quinault, WA
• 12 de enero y 9 de marzo
  • Oficina de Forks, 437 Tillicum Lane, Forks, WA

Las ventas comenzarán a las 9 a. m. en cada oficina el día indicado.

Salal Maps: Download Salal harvest area geo-referenced PDF maps below. They are not a replacement for a more detailed way-finding map. 

• Pacific Ranger District Maps: Pacific North, Pacific South
• Hood Canal Ranger District Maps: Big Creek, Dennie Ahl, Hamma Hamma, Vance Brown, Walker, Weatherwax

Personal use permit: Salal, huckleberry, Oregon grape, rhododendrons, and sword fern are among the native plants that may be harvested for personal use with a permit. Contact your local forest service office to find out how to obtain a free permit. 

Firewood Permits

Personal-Use Firewood Permit- up to 6 cords per calendar year are available for free, and can be used for cutting, manufacturing, handling, or other processing of firewood, but not for resale. Permits are valid for one calendar year. 

Commercial Firewood Permits- available for individuals who wish to resell firewood or collect an additional 10 cords. The rate for commercial firewood permits is $5.00 per cord with a $20 minimum. 

Permits are required for both commercial and personal-use firewood. Permits can be obtained by contacting an Olympic National Forest Office. 

Firewood Permit Requirements (.pdf).

Permits are subject to wood availability. 

Firewood harvesting maps; Los mapas para la cosecha de leña:

• Northeast Firewood Map (Dungeness, Quilcene, Duckabush area)
• Northwest Firewood Map (Forks area)
• Southeast Firewood Map (Cushman, Skokomish, Wynoochee area)
• Southwest Firewood Map (Quinault area)

Wild Berries

At Olympic National Forest, berry picking season begins in July and extends through September. Review information about the many kinds of wild berries available (PDF).

Commercial Use Permits: Commercial use permits are not available for wild berries. Commercial use of Olympic National Forest wild berries is not permitted.

Personal Use: Personal use is free and permissible. Berries may be consumed while visiting the Olympic National Forest. A person may pick up to one gallon of berries per day and up to three gallons of berries per year but these berries may not be sold or bartered. Please contact any Olympic National Forest office with questions.

Christmas Tree Permits

Christmas Tree permits can be obtained seasonlly at Recreation.gov for $5.00 each and are good for one tree on the Olympic National Forest. Each household is allowed up to 5 Christmas tree permits. 

Buy a permit at a forest office: All Olympic National Forest offices are closed to walk-in services to support public health & safety guidelines due to COVID-19. Christmas tree permits can be purchased over the phone, and sent via mail, by contacting one of the Olympic National Forest offices. 

Buy a permit online through Recreation.gov. These permits are good for anywhere on the forest except those areas defined in the terms and conditions. All terms and conditions for this permit are auto generated and will print on the permit. 

Buy a permit from a vendor. Christmas Tree Permits Vendors:
Port Angeles, WA - Swains General Store, 360-452-2357
Sequim, WA - Sequim Visitor Information Center, 360-683-6197
Quilcene, WA - North Hood Canal Chamber of Commerce, 360-765-2200
Hoodsport, WA - Hoodsport Visitor Information Center, 360-877-2021

Please check with your local vendor prior to arriving to check availability and hours of operation. These permits are good for anywhere on the forest except those areas defined in the terms and conditions. 

Free Tree permits for 4th Graders: Every Kid Outdoors initiative is offering one free Christmas tree permit to fourth-graders that have a valid 4th Grade Interagency Pass. These free Christmas tree permits are available online through Recreation.gov or by contacting an Olympic National Forest Office. 

Cutting area maps & permit conditions:

• Forks 
• Hoodsport
• Quilcene
• Quinault
• Quinault Special Management Area - Quinault Special Management Area will be sold at the Quinault office ONLY.  People need to specifically request this permit area and need to have full understanding of the boundaries of the permit.

Christmas tree Permit terms and conditions.

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